


The Quiet Moments

by maely1234



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Canon Divergence, F/F, I don't even know why its this long, I think Allura is like 17-19, M/M, Shiro and Alfor are only mention, Takes place after season 2, Yes for the rare pairs, aura stuff, it never really comes up though, lots of aura stuff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-28
Updated: 2017-06-28
Packaged: 2018-11-20 05:12:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,838
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11329275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maely1234/pseuds/maely1234
Summary: Its starts off simply enough, Pidge finding Allura in one of her more vulnerable moments. But what starts off as Pidge trying to comfort Allura quickly turns into a bigger mess than either of them ever imagined. Both sides are forced to bring their feelings into the light, for better or for worse.Basically, the one aura bonding prompt that everyone uses for Pallura except much more complicated.





	The Quiet Moments

**Author's Note:**

> Time for my first Voltron fic, and for all of you to know I adore the rare pairs. Klance? Shallura? Hah! Basic stuff. What about the Shance? The Sheith? The Shidge? The Hance? The Pallura? I kind of sound like a hypocrite though since this fic has a little Klance in it, but you know what I mean. I am a filthy voltron multishipper, and I am proud af.
> 
> Onto more serious things, Pidge's personality is obviously a little different in this from what it is in canon, at least in terms of how she acts towards Allura. I tried to stay as true to the character as I could while also considering how I think she would change if she had a crush.

"Alright girl, that should fix you right up." Pidge slammed the final panel shut, smiling when she heard the mechanical purr of her lion rumbling in the back of her mind.

With a yawn, she started to put up her materials, making sure that they were well organized and well protected against Lance. The hangar lights let out a quiet hum, filing up the silence that the late nights brought. Pidge could hear Green readjusting herself in the background, the lion's metal claws quietly scraping the hangar floor.

Pidge plopped down in her favorite desk chair, one she had found at the space mall and had absolutely refused to give up. She couldn't help but grin as she pushed the chair towards her laptop, her hair blowing back as the chair's wheels let her glide across the floor.

As she checked up on the decryption program she was running, she took the chance to retie her hair back. She had let it grow out the past couple of months, and now it was just past her shoulders. She kept it pulled back most of the time though, since hair tended to get caught in the gears of the lions when she worked on them.

With another yawn, she stretched back, the chair leaning with her. Instead of straightening, she looked up at the ceiling above her, letting her mind wander.

She could feel the others if she concentrated, tendrils of their quintessence in a more tangible form. They all had just ended up nicknaming it "aura" for the sake of simplicity. Apparently every living thing had aura to an extent, just not all of them could use it. Humans were one of those species, although the Princess said that their bonds with the lions were based around aura, and that was why they had slowly begun to garner more and more control over it.

As a matter of fact, Pidge decided to do a quick look around while she wasn't occupied. Hunk and Lance were in the kitchen together. Keith was in the training room as usual. Shiro was…

Dammit, she had work to get back to. She didn't have enough time to waste it by thinking like this. She her head snapped back down to stare at her laptop screen, letting her mind drown in the strings of code as they rolled past her eyes.

_Sadness. It wouldn't be pushed down this time._

Pidge started upwards, scanning the room to make sure she was alone in her lion's hangar. She looked to Green, who had her head raised from where it had been resting, and was staring at Pidge.

"Was that you?" Pidge asked tentatively, still trying to convince herself that the pang of melancholy that she had felt in her core hadn't been imagined. She only frowned further when Green sent her a clear denial.

_Wanted comfort, so close yet so far away._

There it was again, a sensation as fleeting as a breeze and yet the strongest thing Pidge has felt since they had found Black's cockpit barren. It's not something she can find words to describe, no matter how hard she tried. It's not definitive, more like a concept, similar to how Green communicated but on a deeper, even more intimate level.

Again, she turned to Green for answers, bringing out her aura to the best of her limited abilities to try and forge as strong of a connection as she could at the moment.

Green's mind brushed up beside hers, expansive and vast with experience. Pidge pushed her confusion towards Green, waiting while the lion came up with a reply. Pidge could feel the lion's slight confusion echo her own for a moment, before a wave of understanding washed over, and Pidge  _felt_  Green turn smug.

Green pushed a concept of her own back at Pidge. She wanted Pidge to follow the sensation, for Pidge's benefit.

Pidge tried to ask why, but was met with a silent opposition. Green was hiding something from her. Pidge pushed again, and was met with an overwhelming sense of mirth, followed by the sensation of bubbles in her stomach and frantic confusion.

Pidge felt her cheeks go bright red as she recognized the familiarity of what Green was sending her. It was the exact emotions that had plagued her for nearly her entire time spent inside the castle. She had shared them with Green all those months ago to try and get some guidance to how she could get her stupid hormones to stop doing cartwheels inside her.

"This is not the time for some childish crush." Pidge opened her eyes to hiss at the lion. "This is serious."

She felt Green's version of laughter, a wave so strong it almost made Pidge laugh as well, followed once more by an insistence to follow the feeling.

Pidge consented with a sigh, pointedly ignoring the knowing satisfaction that rolled off Green.

Checking on her program one last time, Pidge stood, closing her eyes once more so she could concentrate on her aura. She stuck close to the wall as she walked, letting her fingertips trace against it to orient herself.

A first, she didn't feel anything but the others' aura, nothing like what had brushed against her earlier. With an annoyed huff, she shut the others out, focusing on extending her aura's reach as best she could, even with her limited range.

Then she felt it reach for her again, and as it touched her aura, she did her best to latch onto it. The feeling tugged at her, a guiding light even with her eyes screwed shut. She turned left, then right, then another right, left again, a maze of twists and turns that she didn't bother to try and comprehend.

As she trekked onwards, the mysterious force only grew in strength, a sign that she was nearing the source.

A quiet, sobbing, hiccup resounded in Pidge's mind, and she snapped her eyes open. She was outside a doorway, and as she peered in she could see the Princess sitting against the walls. Well, more like curled up against the wall, the rest of the room was devoid of anything, save for empty space. Pidge took a step forward, then paused, her cheeks heating. What to do when you stumble across an alien space princess while she's in the middle of an obvious meltdown? She leaned backwards, half convinced she should run before she made everything worse.

Then she heard it, the same sob that had pulled her away from the force, followed by the strongest tug at her aura yet. Pidge took another small step forwards, she could feel Green urging her in the back of her mind, telling her to go to the Princess. This was why Green had been so smug, the force had most likely been the Princess's aura contacting hers, and Green had known, the conniving brat she was. Pidge would have to save vengeance for later though, because right now she was faced with a crying Princess in front of her and had no fucking clue what to do.

Hunk was the emotional one of their group, having the most affinity for the whole bonding process in general, maybe she should go get him? A stern growl from Green was there to reprimand her train of thought however, Green pushing a sense of responsibility onto Pidge. Pidge knew she should do something, seeing as the Princess had to have called her for a specific reason, but how was she going to do this? She could barely make herself not sound like some fawning schoolgirl when talking to the Princess, so how the fuck was she supposed to comfort her?

Screw it. She had a crying Princess in front of her and she was at least going to give it her best shot. Pidge decided, walking resolutely over to the Princess and plopping down beside her. The Princess didn't move until Pidge put a hand on her shoulder though, jumping at the unexpected contact.

"Pidge?" The Princess blinked, leaning forward as if to check if Pidge was really there. "What are you…" The Princess trailed off, hastily wiping her eyes as her spine shot up in an attempt to look better than she felt.

"Do you want to talk?" Pidge slowly offered, keeping her hand tight around the Princess's shoulder. "I mean, I know talking might not be exactly what you want, but it might help. And not like you have to talk to me."

"It's nothing Pidge." The Princess sighed, an expression that was too close to shame for Pidge's liking, her hair shrouding her face as she looked away. "I'm sorry for distracting you from your work."

"Distracting?" Pidge felt her body recoil at the statement, her mind fuming at the prospect that the Princess would ever think that she was bothering Pidge. Pidge would throw down any project if it meant a chance to help the Princess. Before she could tell the Princess how stupid she was being, Pidge felt another wave of loss, like a punch to the gut, and it was unmistakably the Princess's. She let her aura latch onto it, but couldn't help but let out strangled gasp at the intensity of the emotions as they swelled.

At her gasp, the Princess turned back, staring at Pidge with what could only be described as utter panic.

Pidge opened her mouth to tell the Princess it was fine, that she just wanted to know what was wrong, and then she felt Green  _push_. Her vision faded to black and suddenly she wasn't inside her body anymore, but felt like she was hovering just outside. She couldn't see anything but blackness, but she could  _sense_  forces around her on a scale she never thought she could. She could feel the Princess's aura still, beside her, around her, reaching for her. Something was pulling her back though, forcing her down a path she somehow knew would lead her back to where she should be. Before she could make it, she was stopped by the solid wall of Green's consciousness, which blocked the path completely while also shoving Pidge away.

Pidge took a second to find her bearings, her mind racing with the possibilities of just what Green did to her. Her frantic thoughts were thrown out a non-existent window when she felt a distant pang of sadness from what had to be the Princess, her mind finding solace in her new objective. Use whatever Green did to try and help the Princess.

Pidge stretched out, trying to connect with the Princess, but no matter how hard she reached, the Princess's aura seemed to dance around hers, leaving her with nothing but her vague sense of self.

A memory flited through Pidge's senses, or at least, the emotions surrounding it did. It was a second of accomplishment, of pride, only to be swamped beneath a feeling of self-disappointment and regret. It was gone as fast as it had come, a fleeting shadow of the mind that remained just outside her reach. Pidge strained, trying to communicate with the Princess like she did her lion, get her willingness to help, a bottomless desire to  _do something_ , and somehow transfer it across the chasm the Princess was making.

Pidge didn't know if it worked, or if the Princess just got tired of staying like this, but a wave of undeniable warmth spread through her as their auras touched, then began to meld into the other.

It overwhelmed her for a moment, her thoughts getting lost in the flood of emotions and memories that comprised everything that the Princess was and yet so much more. She wondered if the Princess was also experiencing the confusion that Pidge was once again confronted with.

A hollow laugh seemed to ring all round Pidge, and she quickly traced it back to the Princess. Pidge suddenly saw herself looking up at an imposing, but gentle man. He reached out his hand to cup her cheek, and she felt smaller than she ever had, surrounded by something she couldn't recognize. Was it, aura? Somebody else's aura? Her questions were met with a confirmation from the Princess, and Pidge was gently pulled out of what had to be the Princess's memory.

Pidge was left wondering who the man she had seen was, and pushed the question towards the Princess.

Pidge was met with a cascade of memories. She was sitting next to him making flower crowns in a sunny field. Feeling protected in his large arms as he cradled her, shielding her from all of her night terrors. Terrified as she watched her world implode around her, but finding comfort when his familiar figure cut its way through the fire and the smog. Feeling the wet stain of tears as she was set inside the cryo-pod, his smiling face bidding her goodbye as her home faded into nothing but black.

Ah, King Alfor, the Princess's father. Had the Princess been crying because she was thinking of him?

The question itself was met with an overflow of loneliness, one which was hastily pulled back.

Pidge called out, trying to show that she wanted this. She wanted to see things through the Princess's eyes. She wanted to try and bear some of this pain.

She could still feel the hesitation surrounding her, but it was crumbling, fading to dust as Pidge nudged it incessantly, refusing to back away.

It started as a trickle, disappointment over one of Coran's more  _unique_  meals, annoyance at Lance's antics. It worsened soon enough, shame over her capture, feeling like a failure because the paladins were now split apart, and Pidge's mind wavered at the sheer magnitude of it all.

The Princess started to draw back again, guilt exuding from her. Pidge asked-no, demanded for the Princess to stay right where she was.

And when Pidge still feel the Princess's reluctance, she tentatively sent a memory of her own, mindful of the can of worms she could unleash if she accidentally relinquished the regulation of her thoughts and emotions. It was a memory of her, and dad, and Matt. It was after she had been picked on at school for liking the stuff that 'only boys were supposed to like.' She had run off to her room to hide, not wanting to let the rest of her family know, until Matt had come charging in, dad on his heels. There was no stopping him then, as he picked her up and set her on the bed, saying in his most brotherly voice. "What's wrong Katie?"

She had told him it was stupid, she shouldn't bother anyone with it. Then dad had said that any problem is better faced as a family.

Pidge felt the Princess push a question now, cautiously, carefully, if Pidge considered her family.

Pidge froze, trying to keep a lid on the swarm of emotions that was trying to claw its way over to present themselves to the Princess's awaiting aura. But how do you tell someone that they're family without also letting them know that you think that, one day, if they were willing, they could mean more to her than even her family?

Pidge sent a weak sense of affirmation to the Princess, too afraid that if she allowed any more, her common sense would end up losing and she would be left facing an even bigger issue. One that Pidge was not ready to tackle.

A silence settled over both their auras, none offering anything but their presence to the other. Taking the time to simply feel their individual selves mix and swirl around the other. Grasping an understanding on what was 'them' and what was 'they;' sometimes finding that the two had become indistinguishable.

Surprisingly, Pidge decided to break the silence, shifting the warm feeling of being embraced over to the Princess. The team always did have the best group hugs, especially when Shiro was the center of them. That guy deserved as many hugs as he could get. But not like aliens are going to be willing to give out group hugs, and that's only if he wasn't sitting in a Galra cell, reliving his worst nightmares.

A flood of concern came rushing into her, and she realized that she hadn't tried to hide her thoughts, leaving them open for the Princess to see. She immediately reigned them in, then tried to show the Princess that she was fine, just missing Shiro a little bit, shoving as much hope and optimism into it as she could.

Pidge thought that if they weren't like this, the Princess's eyebrows would have been reaching her hairline, with the amount of suspicion and disbelief that was radiating off her. But it wasn't like the Princess was much better, and Pidge sent the Princess the image of walking in on her crying. Alone. By herself. Hiding her feelings from the rest of the team, when they would be glad to step in.

Pidge felt a quick flash of indignation, overshadowed by an unwilling sort of acceptance and resignation. It was followed by another memory, of her standing above the paladins. They were looking up at her, relying on her. Shiro stood next to her, a friend to help bear the burden of the paladin's expectations. Then she was alone, left on a barren pedestal with no one close enough to reach out to. She was drifting farther and farther upwards, a crowd of expectant eyes boring holes into her from below.

Pidge rebutted with an image of them together, fighting as Voltron without Shiro. The six of them sitting down together, relaxing after a well fought battle, as equals. As friends. As family. How they had comforted her after her trembling admission of her night terrors that had woken them up with her screams. Pidge wasn't alone, and neither was she.

Gratitude washed over Pidge, crisp and clear and powerful. Pidge returned the feeling as best she could, trying to loosen some of her own guards in the process, while keeping a tight lid on the more,  _extreme_  thoughts and feelings.

The Pidge felt another question brush her aura, timid and uncertain. The desire to stay like this for a little while longer.

Pidge's instantaneous approval even shocked herself with its speed, racing over to the Princess before Pidge could even process it.

A bubble of amusement came at the sudden reply, calming Pidge's anxieties before they could get bigger than she could contain.

Their communications drifted into nonexistence once more, both simply letting their auras move around as they pleased. Emotions shifted back and forth, flickering thoughts were shared for brief instances as they appeared, then slowly died down back into a peaceful lull.

Pidge found herself relaxing more and more as the exchange continued, her own negativities being dwindled down at the sheer wonder and majesty of what was happening here and now. From what Pidge could tell, the same was happening to the Princess, although she hoped it wasn't just the Princess shoving all her unwanted feelings into the background where Pidge had no hope of finding them.

Faintly, Pidge felt something move, distant and vague. She loosely recognized it as Green removing her presence. Pidge felt herself slipping away, being forcefully tugged back into herself. She tried briefly to fight against it, but stopped when it proved futile.

She could still feel the Princess's aura, just out of her reach. Then she was settling back down into her skin, static spreading throughout her. The walls closed around her, and she was alone in her head once more.

She forced her eyes open with a gasp, blinking as she waited for the world to come back into focus. Her head was buzzing gently, her thoughts circling around in a slow haze, struggling to find her bearings.

"Pidge? Pidge, are you alright?" The Princess's voice cut through the fog that hung around her mind. Pidge turned her head towards the comforting sound.

"I'm fine Princess, just give me a sec." Her own voice was bleary and jumbled, even to her ears.

The Princess's face came into sight as Pidge was finally able to see again. The hum in her head quieted down to a residual murmur.

With a start, Pidge realized that she was leaning heavily on the Princess's shoulder, and she let out an undignified yelp as she scrambled away. She fought with herself to keep the rising blush contained, and more or less succeeded.

"Pidge, are you sure you're alright?" The Princess was staring at her with a concerned confusion, her hand making its way to touch Pidge's shoulder. "I'm sorry if I startled you."

"Don't worry about it Princess, just needed a minute to clear my head." Pidge replied, waving her hand to dismiss the Princess's concerns.

The Princess looked away, her hands playing with the fabric of her dress. "Pidge, I want to- to thank you for that."

"It was nothing Princess, besides-" Pidge gave the Princess a smile, but it faded to a bewildered frown as her vision swam. She blinked down at her hand, her eyes narrowing as the world started to spin and one hand quickly became two, and then three. The pounding in her head returned stronger than before, and her other senses faded underneath its roar.

"Pidge!" That was the Princess, wasn't it? Pidge couldn't tell anymore. She was moving somewhere, falling over. Her hands didn't register it enough to catch herself, and the icy burn of the metal floor met her cheek. She felt that well enough, before it too faded, succumbing to the ever-growing buzz that pounded against her skull.

"Pidge, I'm so sorry-I didn't mean for-" That was the Princess. What was she upset about? The Princess shouldn't worry about the whole aura thing, not when it hadn't bothered Pidge. The Princess really shouldn't be forced to worry about anything, but Pidge didn't have much control over that.

Pidge tried to get her mouth to move, to assure the Princess that she shouldn't panic, but her head still wasn't connecting properly. She could feel her lips moving, seemingly on their own, but she couldn't hear what she was saying.

"Don't worry…I…enjoyed it. Being…together…" Was that her voice? It might be. Her mind was too tired to work at it anymore. With one last weak effort at resistance, she let go, slipping down into the soothing void of unconsciousness.

* * *

Pidge first awoke to the sound of voices. They started as faint murmurings in the back of her mind, but slowly grew into their unique pitches.

"She's gonna be okay, right? She looks kinda pale." That had to be Hunk, his voice always goes high when he's anxious. He was close, probably right next to her head,

"Don't worry number two, number five 'll be jumping around like an angry Oabu soon enough." That was definitely Coran, knowing him and his crazy sayings. His voice had sounded from near her head, across from Hunk.

"Coran's right, she'll be fine." The response had a rasp to it that only Keith had; he was further away than Hunk and Coran though. He might even be by her feet.

"Besides, our little Pidgey is tougher than she looks." Why was Lance still using that ridiculous nickname? Hadn't she told him to stop that already?

With a groan, she forced herself to sit up. She rested one hand on the bed while the other rubbed her eyes, trying to get rid of the bleariness.

"Pidge!" Three collective voices cried out at once, Keith and Lance joining Hunk as he wrapped his arms around in a bone crushing hug. Coran busied himself in the background, checking various monitors that sat nearby.

"Hey guys." Pidge had to stifle a yawn, her eyes blinking slowly as she struggled to stay awake. "What's up?"

"Seriously? You can't just scare us like that and-" Hunk was saying something, but Pidge felt the world spin again, and she couldn't hardly keep her eyes open anymore. She only felt the support of hands on her back edging her back down before it all washed away into black once more.

The second time she opened her eyes, there were no voices to greet her, but she could finally process her surroundings. She was in a room of the castle she hadn't seen before, it was about as big as the cryopod room but it was rectangular, lined with cots and various machines.

She was swaddled in blankets herself, a nice cocoon of warmth that she was loathe to leave. But she needed to get up sometime, and she swung her legs over the side of the bed, careful not to disturb the wire that hooked up with her arm. It looked like an IV drip of some sorts. Her brows furrowed as she stared at it for a minute. Had she really been that bad? She certainly didn't think so.

As her gaze traveled back up, Pidge felt her breath catch in her throat. The Princess was sleeping in a chair next to the bed, her hands folded neatly in her lap. Her back rested against the chair, and her head was tilted to rest on her shoulder. Her hair shimmered under the artificial lighting, the shadows moving back and forth like waves with the rise and fall of her chest.

Pidge couldn't help but pause, drinking in the woman in front of her.

Slowly, hesitantly, she nudged the Princess' leg with her foot. As much as she wanted to let the Princess sleep, she couldn't go anywhere without getting the wire off, and frankly, she didn't know if she should be moving around. Sure, she felt fine, but she had also felt fine right up until she passed out however many hours ago. So she wasn't exactly confident in her self-analysis.

The Princess only awoke to the third nudge, her face scrunching up for a moment as she stretched. Her eyes opened slowly, staying half lidded. The pink flecks of her pupils lit up when her bleary gaze landed on a now completely awakened Pidge.

"Pidge! You're awake. Excellent." Allure exclaimed, almost jumping out of the chair to check the various screens beside the bed.

"So, what happened exactly?" Pidge asked, almost wishing she hadn't when the Princess shrank.

The Princess' fingers froze in their task, clenching and unclenching as her eyes drifted down, guilt written on all her features.

"You were exhausted. Your body wasn't made to use quintessence actively and the-" The Princess paused, swallowing before she could continue. "the prolonged usage surpassed your limits. Your body shut down because of it. We managed to stabilize you, but you still need time for your body to recover completely."

"Huh." Was Pidge's ever so eloquent response, her mind skipping social etiquette to instead focus on she could possibly test aura limits. Could it be used as a weapon? Well, she would need far better control over it to even consider using it as a weapon. But maybe it could serve as a distractor of sorts. She would obviously have to build up her aura endurance, if that was even possible. The Princess and Coran might have some answers on that though.

The Princess' soft laughter broke through Pidge's thoughts. A grin split the Princess' face as she paused, breathlessly she said, "I don't remember ever learning about weaponizing one's quintessence. Although it sounds incredibly interesting."

Shit. How much of that had she said out loud? Pidge couldn't recall, and she was left smiling awkwardly, praying that she didn't just make a fool of herself.

"Aren't you guys the species with all the fancy aura tricks? I would have thought that someone would have considered it." Pidge settled for nervous laughter, her hands reaching up to where her glasses normally sat. Finding her face empty, she scanned the nearby area, relaxing when she saw them sitting on a table beside her.

"I never finished my training. With quintessence." Pidge turned at the regretful mutter that came from the Princess, her eyes widening as she took in the Princess' pained smile. "My teachers never got around to it before…before all of this."

"I'm sorry." Pidge offered despite knowing how useless it was. "I know-" She froze, because how could she possibly know what the Princess was going through? Only, she had to stifle a gasp as she realized she knew  _exactly_  what the Princess was feeling. It was weak, much fainter than it had been before, but she could still sense the Princess' aching loneliness, the dull yet sharp pain and loss. She whispered, "I know how you feel."

Pidge kept her gaze on the Princess, prepared for a sharp rebuttal of 'How could you know?' or something along those lines. She was left surprised when the Princess did none of that, instead looking almost scared. The Princess seemed hesitant as she said, "Still? I assumed the bond would have been broken by now, especially with the strain it put on your body."

"Bond? Is that what all of-" Pidge gestured to the two of them. "that was? Last night?"

"Relatively speaking, yes." The Princess sat back down, clasping her hands together as they rested on her lap. "Although you have been unconscious for about two quintents."

Two days? She had really been out for that long? The Princess' regret and guilt that she could both see and feel certainly confirmed it, even as it opened a chasm of unidentifiable emotions in Pidge's gut.

"It's not your fault." Pidge said with conviction. "I made my own choices."

"I am the commander of this castle. I should at least be able to keep myself composed. Let alone have some self-control." Allura snapped back, bitterness seeping through her words.

"You're only human-well, altean, but you know what I mean. You are allowed the feel sometimes." Pidge retorted. "It's not easy for any of us, let alone you. I mean, at least we know that Earth is safe."

The Princess' shoulders drooped, and Pidge immediately hated herself and her stupid mouth. This was why she didn't talk to people that much, she always screwed it up in the end, even when she was just trying to be helpful.

"I'm sorry! God that was dumb, I didn't want it to come out like that. I wasn't thinking and-"

"It's alright Pidge. I understand you didn't intend for it to sound like it did." The Princess' soft reply stopped Pidge's frantic rambling.

"But still, that was a shit thing to say." Anger still burned in her gut, how could she have said something so  _stupid_.

"You shouldn't be angry at yourself." The Princess stated, and Pidge suddenly remembered that the connection went both ways.

Pidge didn't have much of a response to that though, choosing to shrug while giving a halfhearted "eh."

"Pidge, if you don't mind me asking, how did you find me?" The Princess asked, her gaze fixed on her own hands.

Pidge was only too happy to change topics. She wasn't interested in receiving yet another talk about her self-perception.

"This is going to sound weird, but I felt something reaching out for me. It was kind of like what Green does, but different, if that makes sense. I just followed it and it lead me to you." Pidge explained quickly, her mind noting the Princess' now darker cheeks with confusion. Was she just seeing things or was the Princess…embarrassed?

"I see." Was all the Princess said. The pink flecks in her pupils had grown smaller, barely visible as her eyes shifted from Pidge, to her hands, and back again.

"Is there something wrong with that? I know it doesn't exactly sound true but-"

"It's not that Pidge. Your explanation makes perfect sense, I just wasn't expecting it." The Princess stopped her, taking a deep breath as she prepared to continue. "Quintessence is incredibly complicated. Even we Alteans hadn't been able to discover all its intricacies. The phenomena you described is one that I learned about extensively; however, it is incredibly rare because it requires very  _specific_  conditions."

"Conditions?" Pidge couldn't help but ask, her curiosity overriding the part that was growing increasingly alarmed by the now clear blush on the Princess' cheeks.

"Ah, well, you could say that-in a way its-uh…" The Princess' stammering stopped as she drew in a breath, closing her eyes as she released it. "It requires a deep level on trust on both ends."

"Okay?" Pidge tilted her head, trying to figure out what exactly about that made it so hard for the Princess to say.

"What I am trying to say is, my quintessence reached out subconsciously while I was emotionally… unstable, so to say; my quintessence went to the person I most trusted at the moment."

"And that was me?" Pidge snorted incredulously, shoving down the wonder that came with the thought that the Princess might trust  _her_  over anyone else.

"Yes." The Princess replied, the color in her cheeks fading.

"Nice." Pidge managed to give the muttered answer, her thoughts still doing cartwheels around the Princess' answer.

Silence settled over their conversation, thick and awkward. Pidge wanted to say something about the whole bonding thing, but she didn't want to bother the Princess more than she had already.

"I'll go get the others." The Princess broke the silence, already halfway out of her chair. "They have been anxious to see you." She pauses, letting out a short laugh. "Coran and I had to assign shifts to watch over you so they could let themselves rest."

"Wait!" Pidge surprised even herself with the exclamation. She felt her cheeks heating up as the Princess turned back to look at Pidge curiously. "I, uh, just wanted to ask, I mean, as long as it's alright with you, if you wouldn't mind, maybe…maybe we could do it again?"

"Why would you-" The Princess' eyes had narrowed in an expression dangerously close to furious. "No. Absolutely not, under any circumstances. It was incredibly reckless and downright dangerous for your well being."

"I get it. Sorry for asking." Pidge tried her hardest to get rid of any disappointment laced in her words or thoughts. Logically, she knew the Princess was right. She needed to just recover and move on from it all; forget it ever happened. The logical side was ready to give in, but the emotional side of her mind refused to be quelled, revolting with the sinking feeling in her gut as the Princess turned away.

"I'm the one who is sorry. I should have refused to continue as soon as I noticed you were beyond your normal range." The Princess kept her back to Pidge as she sighed. "Please, believe me when I say that if it wouldn't endanger you, I would gladly do it again. But that isn't possible."

Before Pidge could even think of a response, the Princess left the room, her dress trailing behind her.

Absentmindedly, she reached out to grab her glasses and put them on, their weight comforting.

"Number 5! Pleasure to see you up and at 'em again." Coran's overly chipper voice made Pidge jump as it seemingly appeared out of nowhere. He was tapping at the monitors, brows furrowed as he twirled his mustache.

"Am I good to go?" Pidge asked, suddenly overwhelmed by the desire to stand up and stretch her legs out. She tried to crane her neck to see the monitors, but was pushed back down by Coran.

"Just a tick. Need to make sure your vital organs are working correctly." Coran replied, sliding his finger across the screen.

"What exactly made me pass out?"

"Quintessence backlash, terrible thing really. Overstep your quintessence limit and your systems tend to shut down trying to compensate for it." Coran gave a final tap before moving over to remove the IV drip. "Don't worry, all your systems are running just fine as of now."

Relieved to finally have free reign of her movements, Pidge raised her arms up to stretch, arching her back.

"Pidge!" She froze mid-stretch at the shouts, practically tackled by both Lance and Hunk as they engulfed her in hugs.

"I'm so happy you're awake, and not dead, and just..." Hunk drifted off into unintelligible blabbering mixed with tears and sniffles.

Lance didn't add anything, simply tightening his already crushing grip.

"Guys, this great and all, but air!" Pidge choked out, giving a sigh of relief when they relented and she could breathe again.

"You're lucky I don't hug you into the next millennium." Lance said, his eyes watery. "I'm supposed to be the stupid one. Unless you feel like switching places."

"Not anytime soon." Pidge said with a snort.

"Thank god, the minute that guy becomes the tech guy is the day Voltron falls apart." Keith added with a sharp grin, leaning against the wall closest to Pidge's bed.

"Hey! I know how to use technology. I fly a giant robot lion, or did you forget that?" Lance retorted, sounding indignant, but the wide grin on his face said otherwise.

"Yeah, but can you hack into any and every computer system in the known multiverse? And it still surprises me every time you don't crash." Keith deadpanned back.

"You know what-" Lance paused, eyes widening as he searched for a comeback. Finding none, he settled for the mutter of, "Well, not like you can."

"Not like I'm trying to." Keith raised his eyebrows at Lance's petulant grimace.

"Okay, you two can either stop right there or go back to your room. Because I'm not watching you two try to flirt with each other again." Pidge cut in, grinning as both Lance and Keith's cheeks exploded in red. She would have thought that they'd be a little more used to it, being subject to her constant torture as soon as they had come out to the team. But it was satisfying to see that she could still make them flustered.

"Honestly, yeah. No offense, I completely support you guys as a thing, but sometimes it's a little too much." Hunk added on, and Pidge cackled as both boys' blushes somehow grew darker.

"Oh yeah Pidge, how are you and Allura doing anyways?" Lance teased, and it was Pidge's turn to be at a loss for words, trying in vain to reel back the heat in her face.

"What other business do you have with the Princess?" Coran asked, gaining a groan from Lance and a sigh from Hunk.

"Coran, would you give us a moment?" Keith asked, walking up to stand beside Lance and Hunk.

"I was just about to be on my way anyways. Have to make sure the castle's rear generators are working." Coran said hastily, an offended tilt in his voice. But thankfully, Keith understood that anything said around Coran would reach Allura's ears one way or another. "But we'll have to monitor number five for the next couple of days. Lots of nasty side effects to worry about. I don't think they'll pop up, but it won't hurt to keep an eye out."

"Got it." The four of them chorused together.

Once Coran was assured to be out of hearing vicinity, Pidge gave out a short, sharp laugh. "What do you expect Lance? It's the same as always, which is to say, we still are going nowhere. I just need to accept that it's never going to happen and move on."

"Nope."

"Huh?" Pidge couldn't help but be confused at the snappy response, something she would have normally expected from Keith. A distant corner of her mind wonders if being a couple means you begin to rub off on one another.

"Nope." Lance repeated, putting his hands on her shoulders. "Nope, nope, nope. You do not get the right to talk like that. If you're going to give me and Keith shit, you better be prepared to practice what you preach."

"But you actually had a chance with Keith from the beginning. This was hopeless from the start." Pidge sighed, pushing herself off the bed and away from Lance's grip.

"Pidge, look at me." Hunk spoke next, his dark brown eyes boring into her hazel ones. "I don't care what you think, you're the girl who managed to sneak into one of the most heavily guarded places on earth, who hasn't stopped searching for her family even after she was forced into space by a magical blue lion, and learned how to use advanced alien technology in a couple of weeks. If Allura doesn't see how amazing you are, I will personally make her food taste like rotten onions."

Pidge sniffled, wiping away the water in the corners of her eyes. She would be damned if she let herself cry now. Instead, she giggled at Hunk's last statement. "Hunk, I don't think the castle has a rotten onion setting for food goo."

Hunk grinned, his eyes lighting up as he said, "I'll find a way, eventually."

Her laughter fading away, Pidge turned to Keith with raised eyebrows. "Have anything to add, oh so respected leader?"

Keith shrugged, the arm Lance had casually thrown around his shoulders moving with the motion. "Not anything that hasn't already been said. But seriously, there's something between you two."

"You think?" Pidge asked derisively.

"Are you kidding? Anyone with eyes can see it." Lance snapped back, a small smile on his face. Both Keith and Hunk nodded in agreement.

"Fine. Whatever. How about you tell me what I've missed for the past two days?" Pidge said, walking ahead before any of them could comment on her untactful change of topics. She knew they were loath to let the issue die, especially Lance and Hunk, but she was done moping over it, at least for now.

"We ran into a small fleet, but were able to shake them off. Red and Blue got hit a couple of times though." Keith said, and Pidge smiled, glad to finally have something else to work on.

_"I'm sorry."_

The words were crisp and clear, and Pidge put a hand on Green's paw to better convey her own feelings.

"It's okay. You couldn't have known. You were just trying to help me and the Princess." Pidge comforted Green for what had to be the thirtieth time over the past few days. Still, Green's regret and guilt were strong in the back of her mind as they sat together in Green's hangar.

Pidge was nearly done breaking through the latest data they had acquired from a large Galra trade ship. The entire team, although none of them had directly said it, was hoping that they might just have information on where Shiro was. They had heard the rumors on multiple planets, that a group of rebels had the Champion with them and were attacking Galra trading routes. They were mere rumors, but it's all they had to go on.

As if replying to her thoughts, the computer on her lap flashed green, the signal that it had broken through whatever encryption that was protecting the valuable data beneath it.

"I'm in." Pidge smirked, her fingers typing furiously while she skimmed the information for anything mentioning Shiro. Mountains of information scrolled past her eyes, trade routes, shipment details, ship logs, crew observations, but her eyes prickled with tears as she came to the realization that none of it had any reference to Shiro.

It cut deep into her, even with Green's quiet console and reassurance. Once again, she was left helpless while her family, or pseudo-family, was stuck fighting for their lives in who knows where.

She was useless.

The thought reverberated around her distressed mind, it's implication's echoing and growing larger with every whispered repetition.

She should have been able to find them by now. She was the one analyzing the attacks to recognize the pattern. She was the one who had told them that the trade ship was the most likely place to find information on Shiro. She was the one who should be able to get results. And yet, here she was, an idiot who couldn't do anything of use.

Green's voice was fading further and further, swallowed by the abyss of her emotions that seemed to grow deeper with every breath she took. She was sinking under it, or rather, it was dragging her under.

Her laptop slid to the floor, its loud clatter going unnoticed as she leaned against Green's paw. Pulling her knees to her chest, her eyes screwed shut as she tried to block up the dull throb in the back of her head.

* * *

Allura sighed, taking a moment to simply stare out of the castle, at the vast emptiness that lay before her eyes, only encroached a few distant stars. Walking forward, she put a hand on the glass, followed by her forehead as she leaned against the cool surface.

The silence only gave her thoughts more incentive to run rampant now that she wasn't actively working.

She, Allura, the last princess of Altea, was hiding like a scared child.

Coran might have argued the point with her, maybe Shiro would have too, but neither of them could see the mess of fears and hopes swirling around inside her. It was honestly ridiculous. She didn't understand, or rather, she didn't want to understand.

She didn't want to acknowledge the long standing pit of utter infatuation and respect she had to shove down every time she looked at-

No. A commander didn't get involved with her subordinates, it was basic protocol. A relationship could jeopardize entire missions, not to mention the many, many complications it would bring to the team itself.

She should be wishing that Pidge never found her that night. Instead, she hated how every fiber of her being painstakingly recorded and remembered every moment shared between the two of them that night.

That was the core of the issue, now that she thought about it. That was the reason she couldn't dare show her face in front of the green paladin for too long.

She wanted more, more than would ever be proper or fitting.

It turned out she was just as idealistic as her father had been. How fitting.

A stab of disappointment interrupted her thoughts, one that she knew didn't come from her.

With another sigh, she released the tight grip she had been keeping on her quintessence, letting it follow the emotion to its source.

Her eyes could see her quintessence as it drifted away from her, her vision wasn't nearly as proficient as some of her old tutors, but she could still see the faint smudges of pink that outlined her quinessence.

Her back was to the window now, her eyes staring intently downwards, waiting to see what her quintessence would find.

Only, her quintessence hadn't found anything yet when she felt it again, only much stronger this time. Before it could fade away, her eyes found it, a tiny tendril of green that nudged her quintessence in an almost curious way, each touch sending a new wave of emotion through her.

Allura could only stare at the innocent green tendril with dread sinking in her gut.

A more stubborn part of her mind refused to believe it was happening, arguing that it was all just some hallucination. That was quickly wiped out by the sheer joy coursing through her system.

Pidge's aura was reaching out to hers, that meant that-

That meant Pidge could be in danger. The joy was overtaken by terror. It was too soon for something like this. Pidge's body hadn't had enough time to rest, it wouldn't have the strength for something like this.

Allura bolted, her eyes never leaving the wisp of green that had suddenly become a lifeline.

A small voice reminded her that she should probably tell everyone else. The voice was quieted before it said much else, snuffed out by the sheer  _need_ Allura had to find Pidge.

Rounding the final corner, Allura found herself in the Green Lion's hangar, unsurprising, considering that this was Pidge. The only thing Allura could see though, was the way Pidge was curled into herself next to the Green Lion's paw. The way that Pidge's quintessence churned and shifted around her in a way that was sickening to see.

Allura was at Pidge's side in an instant, putting a hand on the younger girl's shoulder.

"Pidge?" Pidge, can you hear me?" Allura asked softly, forcing her own aura back inside the limits of her body. Pidge didn't need to deal with Allura's quintessence trying to re-bond with hers.

Pidge didn't give a response, only a small groan as her face contorted with pain.

Allura scooped Pidge up without a second thought, cradling the smaller girl as she raced to the infirmary.

She paused when she passed by the button for the coms system though, shifting Pidge's weight to one arm while slamming her other on the button.

"Everyone! Come to the infirmary. It's Pidge." Allura thought she managed to control the panic in her voice reasonably well, considering that one of her worst nightmares was happening right before her eyes. She didn't stop to ponder it though, continuing her mad dash to the infirmary.

A wave of relief passed over her once she arrived at the infirmary, her eyes resting on Coran's awaiting form. She set Pidge down on the nearest bed gently, she wasted no time in attaching the various sensors to the young paladin's forearm.

"Princess. Her vitals are far too high. Her quintessence is out of control. What happened?" Coran asked helping Allura to plug in and check the various machinery.

"I don't know!" Allura snapped back. "Sorry. I'm just worried."

"Don't worry about it Princess. But we do need to find a way to stop her quintessence, her body won't keep up." Coran peeked at the screen again. "Her livalar beating is already far above human standards."

"Coran. She reached out to me." Allura admitted.

"Did she? Curious." Coran muttered his eyebrows furrowed in concentration as he laid an ice cold cloth on Pidge's forehead.

"I-I don't mean it like that Coran, I mean," Allura paused, her cheeks burning even though she knew Coran would understand. "she reached out in  _calamarte_. Just like I did to her the other night."

"Quiznack." Coran whispered his eyes wide. Instantly though, he rushed over to grab both of Allura's hands. "That's wonderful! You should be able to help her now then!"

"How?" Allura asked, letting herself be pushed into a chair and shoved closer to Pidge, who's breathing had started to become erratic.

"You two have already bonded. If you can calm her quintessence enough, it should stabalize her." Coran explained, placing Pidge's hand in Allura's.

"Can't you stay?" Allura asked as Coran turned to leave, leaving the shaky note in her voice undisguised.

"Princess. By this point, the relapse is to large to simply provide her body with extra energy. You're the only one who has a preexisting bond with her. If you can't calm her quintessence down, none of us can. Besides, these things require a touch of privacy." Coran said, his expression grave. "We all trust you Princess, you'll do just fine."

Allura gave him one last glance as the infirmary door closed, leaving only her and Pidge inside. Lance's furious voice trickled through, but Allura shut it out, taking a deep breath as she closed her eyes. If there was something that only she could do to save Pidge, she would gladly do it.

She cleared her mind, letting only her mind's image of her and Pidge's quintessence remain. Even the incessant beeping of the monitors faded as the image grew stronger.

Her quintessence moved closer to Pidge's, pausing just outside its reach. She had no clue how to penetrate the raging storm that was Pidge's quintessence. Taking the risk, she let her quintessence nudge Pidge's, praying that Pidge's quintessence didn't lash out in its volatile state.

To her shock, Pidge's quintessence stopped completely at her touch, it even returned the nudge with a tender sort of carefulness. That was, until it abandoned her quintessence to go diving right back into itself, and the tumultuous storm was soon swirling with even greater force.

Allura didn't understand, with this much disturbance, Pidge's quintessence had to be doing  _something_. Allura looked on, trying to see if there was any way her quintessence could slip inside. To her shock, she noticed that Pidge's quintessence was getting smaller. It was only marginal, but tick by tick, it was shrinking.

Allura forgot delicacy at the realization, pushing her quintessence through the outer wall without a second thought. Surprisingly, Pidge's quintessence gave way, curving around hers, although it didn't stop its churning this time. Relaxing her barriers, Allura welcomed Pidge's quintessence to mingle with hers.

The first thing she felt was hatred, there was no other word for it. Burning and terrifying. The second thing she felt was dissapointment. Hollow and yearning. The third thing she felt was loss, followed by a flash of faces. Some she recognized, like Shiro. Others were unknown, but she had to guess it was Pidge's family from their uncanny resemblance.

Horror spread through her as she slowly realize just who Pidge's hatred was turned towards. Pidge. Pidge's overwhelming hatred was aimed at none other than herself. Allura couldn't fathom it, or the second realization that was dawning.

Pidge's quintessence was lashing out at itself. Savage and wild, she now could feel it gnawing at pieces of itself. Allura had to stop it, somehow, she had to stop Pidge from destroying herself.

Allura sent out memories, snippets of every time that Pidge had been the key part in their success, of every time Pidge was looked on with fond adoration by the other paladins.

It did nothing. It didn't even elicit a pause in the destruction. Allura didn't even get a response.

An idea flitted by, and Allura couldn't deny the rather large chance that it would shock Pidge enough to get her quintessence to slow down, if even for a moment. But, but, but-

She was still terrified. Even if Pidge had reached out in calmarte, deep down, Allura still didn't want to risk rejection. But it wasn't about her, was it? This was about Pidge, and if she could save Pidge, even at the expense of their friendship, then that was a price she was more than willing to pay.

She didn't give herself the chance to second guess her decision, shoving the first wave of thoughts straight into Pidge's quintessence.

A surge of protectiveness as she watched the green lion fly into battle, Pidge inside. The sudden warmth that pooled in her gut as Pidge shot her a grin. Lying awake at night struggling in vain to stop her mind from replaying every interaction the two of them had during the day. The odd sense of pride that filled her whenever Pidge succeeded. The way she had started to simply watch Pidge when it was only the two of them. The moment she finally realized the true depth of her feelings, without denying anything. Her struggle to keep her feelings contained in every conversation they had. Her sheer terror at the nightmare of Pidge dying in battle, and the subsequent reassurances that Pidge was still alive and breathing in the days that followed.

Allura stopped, her hope growing as she noticed that Pidge's quintessence had stopped with her. The following silence was suffocating, Allura anxiously waiting and praying for Pidge's response.

Allura saw an image of herself, learly defined and outlined by Pidge's quintessence. Before she could even process her sheer joy and relief, another image followed it, and another and another, until she was surrounded by a crescendo of sights and emotions; each smashed and stumbled over the other, coming together in a loose sequence.

She was looking at herself through Pidge's eyes, standing tall and strong and radiant against the threats that loomed in the distance. She was looking at herself again, except this time in utter wonder. She felt the awe building, backed by respect and fondness. She was talking to the green lion, feeling confused but accepting of the lion's explanation for why her stomach felt fluttery sometimes. She was cataloging, pocketing away every noticeable detail about herself, or, as she realized, "the Princess" as she was dubbed by Pidge. She felt panic overtake her when Shiro came back alone. The sheer horror as Zarkon's ship reflected the castle's laser back into itself. A twinge of jealousy when she saw how close Shiro and the Princess had gotten. The jealousy was replaced by an acceptance, and acceptance that said she would never be good enough. Never good enough to stand by the Princess' side as an equal, as a lover. She wasn't fast enough, strong enough, smart enough, she wasn't enough of anything to matter.

Allura swelled with righteous fury at that, indignant and shocked that those kinds of thoughts would ever come from someone as incredible and brave as Pidge. She couldn't get the message across fast enough, or Pidge simply refused to hear it; because before she knew it, she was being pushed away. Not forcefully, but it was incessant and demanding.

Allura stood her ground, sending out the same image Pidge had sent her the other night, of all of them together, as a family. Pidge was a part of that family, and Allura wasn't one to abandon people.

Pidge must have heard or accepted Allura's determined statement, as the pushing subsided immediately, and although the walls Pidge just placed still stood, Allura was relieved that Pidge's quintessence didn't go back to destroying itself.

Allura tried to convey the full scale of pride and appreciation that all of them felt towards Pidge. It was met with a stubborn silence, and Allura found herself growing desperate. She had no clue whether or not Pidge was stable yet, but she couldn't chance leaving in case Pidge wasn't and Allura somehow sent her back into a downward spiral.

So instead, Allura sent an apology. She was sorry for pushing Pidge away after the first time. Sorry for not keeping a closer eye on her. Sorry for not acting as a responsible leader should.

Pidge's denial bled through the now softening walls. It wasn't the Princess' fault. None of it was. She made her own decisions, and the Princess couldn't have stopped this.

But she could have. Allura showed Pidge an image of her going to check up on the paladin, stopping whatever caused the relapse before it got out of hand.

Pidge retorted with a memory of her going through the files, of finding nothing about Shiro, of feeling hopeless and angry, of how it simply got out of control from there.

Allura paused, sharing with Pidge a memory of her own that came to mind. It was of an old teacher, one who had said that quintessence was deeply connected and responsive to emotions.

The image of a small flame appeared in Allura's mind, the flame grew in size, but still remained contained; that was, until a green liquid was poured onto it, and it exploded into a whirlwind of fire. Allura sent over her agreement with the image as the analogy Pidge had made started to make sense to her.

Their active communication ceased, although both were still receptive to any stray emotions and thoughts that the other conveyed. Allura could practically feel Pidge's mind turning around the new information, figuring out the way to best use it to her advantage, as she always did. It was one of the many things Allura had grown to love about her.

A question made its way over timidly, but full of a bright hope. Pidge wanted to know if Allura had meant what she thought.

Allura's agreement was instantaneous, but it was followed by the assurance that it wouldn't make a difference if Pidge accepted it or not.

Allura could feel Pidge's amusement, and for a brief second, Allura thought that Pidge might be laughing at  _her_. The fear was soon obliterated under Pidge's furious denial. Pidge sent over the memory of her conversation with Green. How she asked the lion to sort out what exactly the cocktail of emotions in her gut were, and why they only appeared when she was around the Princess.

Allura gave Pidge her gratitude, along with the memory of the stray glance towards Pidge that had somehow made her realize what she felt wasn't completely platonic.

Allura posed a question to Pidge, about how she was feeling as of now. A myriad of emotions was Pidge's response; the paladin simply lowered her barriers even further, allowing Allura access to every and any emotion or thought Pidge had.

The self-hatred was still there, to Allura's regret, but it was small, miniscule in comparison to what it had been. So was the disappointment and loss. But much more prevalent, to Allura's relief, was a quiet joy, a calm, and a sense of acceptance. Of course, there was also the quick flashes of an even stronger bliss, and an edge of eagerness, a taste of laughter, short and sweet as Pidge's was.

Confidant that Pidge would be fine without her, Allura still asked if Pidge would be alright with her leaving. They did have the others to ensure that it would be okay from here on out.

Pidge agreed readily, and although Allura could admit she was loathe to leave, she extracted her quintessence from Pidge's. She made sure to separate as cleanly as possible, as to not accidentally set off anything else.

Once they were separated, Allura let the image fade in it's intensity, although she kept a faint picture just in case. Sounds flooded into her ears, the now slower beeping of the monitors, the obvious shuffling of feet outside the infirmary, Coran's voice as he tried in vain to shush the paladins.

Allura look down at Pidge, who met her gaze with tired, half-lidded lenses.

With a tiny smirk and a small wave of her hand, Pidge motioned for Allura to go and let the other paladins in already.

Allura complied, giving Pidge's hand a squeeze before standing up. She walked off the mental exhaustion that the bonding had caused, opening the infirmary doors to welcome in both the paladins and Coran, to whom she gave a nod as he walked by.

"Quiet though. Pidge still needs rest." Allura warned them softly.

She helped Coran update the systems and administer the remaining fluids that Pidge needed while the paladins conversed. Hunk fluttered around, checking up on Pidge by his own standards all while still maintaining a steady flow of questions and concern. Lance had a grin on his face, although his eyes betrayed his worry; he still cracked a few jokes though. Keith stood near him, his expression mostly stoic, save for the small, but incredibly relieved smile on his face.

Eventually though, Pidge looked like she would fall asleep at the next word, so the paladins were herded out by Coran. They protested at first, but after Allura had stepped in they had complied quickly enough, of course, only after Allura assured them that she would keep watch over Pidge.

"Hey do you know what calamarte is?" Pidge asked in a quiet murmur. "I probably didn't pronounce it right but...I heard it when we were bonded or whatever."

"Yes." And even though it really shouldn't be an embarrassment, considering what Pidge had shared with her, Allura couldn't help the heat on her cheeks. "It is an ancient term, it was considered a sacred act on Altea. One thing you must understand is that quintessence is nearly incapable of connecting with other quintessences without conscious guidance. However, under emotional distress, your quintessence gains the ability to connect with others without your control. But it will only do so with someone you have a deep romantic interest in."

Allura paused, gauging Pidge's reaction. Pidgedidn't say anything,a knowing smile on her face.

"Calamarte is...calamarte is an incredibly rare occurrence. I can't think of a term in your language to encompass it, but Altean considered it an honor." Allura gave a soft chuckle. "Royal marriages were even postponed until the pairing underwent it, if they even did at all. I can remember my father telling me how wonderful the feeling was."

A yawn silenced Allura, who looked back down to see that Pidge was struggling to to stay awake, her eyelids drooping almost immediately after they opened.

"Don't worry about it too much, we'll talk later." Allura couldn't help the smile the spread across her face.

"About what...?" Pidge mumbled but Allura knew that the paladin had already the fight against sleep, her breaths even and slow.

"Only good things." Allura brushed Pidge's bangs aside to press a gentle kiss to her forehead. "Only good things."

**Author's Note:**

> First, i'm sorry if the ending seems a bit rushed, I was only planning to have this be around 5-6,000 words, and instead I go this monstrosity. By the end I was mostly trying to just make it stop already.
> 
> And yes, Pidge and Allura do get together and are basically the power couple. Seriously, the Galra will soon know not to capture only one of them because of the utter destruction that follows.
> 
> Technically Green is responsible for all of it. It wasn't something I got around to explaining in detail, but basically Green pushed Pidge out of her normal limits in order to bond with Allura which resulted in everything else. Green did have good intentions though, even if things went south for a little while.
> 
> Also ignore the horrible attempts to come up with Altean terms. Fun fact, I don't know Altean. Surprising, right? I tried.
> 
> For some reason the mice are just nonexistent? Just pretend that they're conveniently sleeping through it.
> 
> Lastly, the main reason Pidge refers to Allura as the Princess throughout this is because it was Pidge's way of trying to hide her feelings by distancing Allura in her mind. It's much easier to stay away from "the Princess" than it is simply "Allura." I like to think it got to a point where she would even call Allura "the Princess" out loud, but when it happened around Allura she gave Pidge a weird look, so from then on Pidge avoided refering directly to Allura. I never got around to explaining it in the fic for some reason.


End file.
